Princess Pocahontas?

Everybody makes a big deal about Cinderella, with her long blond hair and poofy blue dress that matches her twinkling eyes. But I've never wanted to wear that powder blue gown or win the adoration of the tall, dark prince charming. In fact, the prince charming in Cinderella always seemed a bit superficial and transparent to me. Though I by no means seek to disclaim the title of a prince seeking, castle loving girly girl, the Cinderella story never really satisfied me--there was always that little puzzle piece of the story that seemed displaced within the tale that left me unsatisfied.

Then came Pocahontas. There's been a little controversy concerning whether or not my favorite Disney princess is really a princess atall and as you'll observe within the Disney Dynasty, she's certainly not the favorite. You never spot her wearing an impressive outfit or a shiny crown. She's always hanging out in the background perhaps with Mulan or the other ones with questionable princess status and never attends the afternoon teas with Cinderella, Aurora, and Ariel. But her earthy, compassionate, and free spirit always intrigued me and inspired me to be more like her--the song "The Colors of the Wind" runs chills down my spine as she sings, "But I know every rock and tree and creature has a life, has a spirit, has a name." It sounds silly, but something about her sincerity and freeness just speaks to my soul and helps me to see nature as such a gift and want to share my love for it with others. I always felt like Pocahontas when I went to camp and wandering off on my own I would rush through the leafy forests and skip from rock to rock of a babbling brook. She helped me to see what others couldn't and ponder on the more important things that this life has to offer.

So long story short, my best friends make fun of me for favoring the ethnic, black haired, nature girl princess and you probably will too, but I can't deny the overwhelmingly powerful inspiration that I feel when I watch it, even now.

Peeps are my Easter obsesssion. And basically just my obsession all year round. And though most people associated the fluffy sugar coated inflated marshmallow puffs with Easter, I embrace them through all seasons. In fact, as most of you are probably unaware, the Peep modo is "Always in Season." Which is very true. See, if you actually look around for them you will find that different peeps are made for every occasion that you can imagine, keeping me and other peep enthusiasts hooked all year long. They have them in pumpkin, hearts, gingerbread men, eggs, stars, tulips and plenty more.

I recently joined the Peeps fan club. Yes, I actually spent three minutes of my life filling out an online form entitling me to peep VIP status which includes emails including updates and fun facts, and some useful information about the history of peep production. I also own a peep coloring book and a peep pen. Apparently, I'm not alone in my passionate love for these sugary delights since as the website declares, "the amount of Peeps chicks and bunnies eaten on easter could more than circle the earth's circumference." I'm pretty sure I contribute quite a bit to that count, since I ate about 30 peeps on easter and about 20 a day for the next few days. See, it takes a little time after the holidays hit for me to adjust back to life without them. I personally prefer the classic yellow ducks--for some reason the ducks just taste better than the bunnys. I've only been disappointed in a type of peep exept for once instance, when I tried the Christmas stars which were peppermint flavor. Peppermint with marshmallow just tastes wrong, but everyone makes mistakes so I'm not holding a grudge. I'm not sure where this passion originated...maybe part of it is that they're just so dang cute. I love to let them sit out for few days until they get almost hard because it brings out the flavor. Other favorite methods of peep preparation is exploding them in the microwave, dipping them in chocolate, or places them on top of cupcakes. And if you don't like peeps I think you should give them another chance because you're really missing out on this somewhat unhealthy obsession that I have. And that's just unfortunate.

p.s. Visit the website! You'll like it.

Milk and Cereal Milk and Cereal Milk and Cereal, Cereal and Milk

Some people don't eat breakfast. They say they're just not hungry. This is a mystery to me. How can you not be hungry when you havn't eaten for like eight hours? One of the most exciting parts of getting up in the morning is pouring that bowl of cereal and enjoying it for a few minutes before I have to actually get ready and face the day. Though my cereal preference has changed through the years, it still remains a crucial part of my morning routine. As a kid I was obsessed with cinnamon toast crunch and I would eat like three bowls of it before school. A close second was cocoa crispies just because it turned my milk all chocolatey. When I started playing sports I switched to some more hearty versions, like granola and whole grain oaty stuff and presently I'm just plain hooked on honey nut cherrios! They have that sugary honey-wonderful sweetness but are nutritious too!

So there's good news and bad news. And it all concerns chocolate. The bad is that chocolate might one day be considered an drug--and the good is that us "chocoholics" might have more will power than we give ourselves credit for.

Though the term "chocoholics" suggests an addiction of sorts, no one seriously considers those people true addicts. After all, it's just candy--right? Wrong.

Doctors, scientists, researchers and the like have recently been pulling up evidence that inability to resist that 2nd or third candy bar may have little to do with what fitness experts preach of will power and just plain self control. Doug Taren, PH.D associate dean of public health at the University of Arizona says, "Eating it can boost levels of serotonin and dopamine, two chemials responsible for regulating mood and behavior." Similarly, Spanish reserachers discovered that chocolate contains the same alkaloid compounds associated with alcoholism and a seperate study reflected that chocolate candy contains theobromine, a stimulant used in place of codein in cough syrup. Recently, we've seen the cough syrup get caged up in locked glass cases as more and more kids are chugging it to get high. Is it possible that excessive chocolate can have similar effects? Experts say maybe. One group of scientists cited in Shape Magazine "connected some of the chemicals in chocolate to the mood elevators found in marijuana."

So maybe, just maybe us chocolate junkies might really be addicted to the stuff. The way I see it, if eating chocolate is wrong, I don't want to be right! And I just hope that my favorite chocolate treats will never be locked up behind a glass case--at least not in my lifetime.

God's Greatest Fruit

"Watermelon is God's greatest fruit," says my father. I cannot recall a summer without a memory of my dad butchering a watermelon late in the night and calling my sister Brooke and I down to the kitchen to partake. We never ate it the traditional way--Dad first slices it in half with the big knife exposing its ripened red center, and with spoons we dig away circular scoops. Before we know it, it's all carved out like a pumpkin, with only the rind remaining and a big pool of water sitting in the bottom. Dad's fascination with watermelon never diminishes, in fact I'm convinced it grows stronger with each new year. "It's like eating and drinking at the same time, " he raves. And it's true! Maybe it's just his passion for the fruit that inspired me, but I feel the same affection for that God-given fruit. Nothing else even comes close to challenging the watermelon's unique ability to deliver crisp refreshment and bursting flavor while still giving a little something to chew and savor, rather than just gulp down. Watermelon eating is almost a legacy in my family...Dad took great care to teach me how to pick out the perfect one out of a whole barrel, with a series of tapping and thumping techniques. It's all very technical you see.

What's funny is that unfortunately, my mother shares no such passion for the produce and dreads those summer days when my dad trucks home a big melon and smashes it open, leaving its sticky juices gushing all over our granite countertops. She can hardly bear to watch us spit the shiny black seeds into her nice sink and see our wet spoons scattered all over the place...so that's why we traditionally have our little feasts in the quiet of night, when mom is fast asleep. :)

Low Fat Lovin'

Personally, I love all the low fat, reduced sugar, calorie cutting foods because basically it means that I can eat twice as much. There's indulgence without the guilt and realization that those twenty minutes sweating on the treadmill a few hours back were all for naught. As I observe my friends' eating habits, I notice their ability to eat "bad foods" in moderation--foods that I won't touch because I have no such self control. That's why I go for the individually wrapped, single serving stuff, like weigh watcher's chocolate cakes. I can have one every day and feel that chocolate hankering get satisfied. Put a whole chocolate cake in front of me and It's all over...I simply cannot resist that 2nd or 3rd slice. If it is there, I will eat it. I'm not a small portions kind of gal, and I have a feeling that I never will be, so I look for the "Healthy Choice" lables and pay less attention to the serving sizes. After all, a half cup of icecream? And those measely little single serving cups of Ben & Jerry's? Who are they kidding? I could eat 10 of 'em.

This prolonged holiday weekend has really taken a toll on me diet-wise. These past five days...oh wow it's almost been a week now...I've been indulging in gluttonous behavior the likes of which you've never seen and loving it! That is, I've loved it until now.

It all started with valentines day. That one wonderful holiday when you can wear pink and red at the same time and eat chocolate from sun up to sun down with no guilt whatsoever. See, the point is that that kind of behavior is only supposed to last one day. But apparently I just couldn't let go because the day after valentines I went straight to the leftover fudge. So I ate chocolate for breakfast that day, and for the following three mornings after. From there the indulgence intensified to consuming every sweet in sight, ansd in mass proportions. I'm talkin everything from hershey kisses to cupcakes to packages of candy hearts. I need an intervention and fast because it's just getting ridiculous! I've been getting these weird sugar headaches and painful stomache aches but somehow as soon as they subside, I'm completely refreshed and ready to start the process all over again!

I swore that monday it would be different. But not so. It must be the holiday thing. The worldwide excuse to indulge. But it's presidents day for goodness sakes! That's not a food holiday atall! Well anyway, I have high hopes for tomorrow and I'm gonna try very hard to turn over a new leaf.